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Hoops

Although I’m completely out of the running for any of the three pools in which I’m participating, I’m really enjoying the NCAA Tourney this year. This weekend, there were some great games–today’s two games were both nail-biters that came right down to the wire–and I’m looking forward to the Final Four next weekend. A friend of mine is a Georgia Tech grad. and may have a chance to go to San Antonio to see them play. I wish Florida hadn’t gotten rocked in the first round and that I had a chance to go see them play in the Final Four… “maybe next year.”

Dream Job

I didn’t catch the first half of the season, but what I saw of ESPN’s Dream Job was pretty interesting. ESPN has a knack for creating interesting game shows with regular people trying to do extraordinary things in real-time. Beg, Borrow and Deal was a good show and I was disappointed to see it fade at the end of the second season. Dream job, I think, will probably have another season (even if it’s for a different job or with a slightly different twist) some time in the next year.

I thought it was clever that they allowed “America” to choose the finalist and it was neat to see Mike Hall’s salary–$95,000 American–decided on Sports Center on live TV. Overall, I think the show was a good idea, although it was tailored to a very specific audience. But then, pretty much everything on ESPN is tailored to a specific audience: people who dig sports.

The Silver Chair

I’ve read the first couple chapters of the sixth book in C.S. Lewis’ The Chronicles of Narnia and I think it’s going to be another great story. He sure has a talent for weaving stories together and using commonalities to make the reader acquainted enough with the environment and characters so as not to be uncomfortable or turned off by the unfamiliar while keeping the story fresh with new plot ideas and characters. I don’t think I’ll have any problem finishing the series before I head to Florida in a few weeks.

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Spaceballs

When I first moved here, I picked the DVD up at Target for about 10 bucks. Tonight, I finally got around to watching it and I was vividly reminded of Mel Brooks’ unique style and ability. Of course, seeing John Candy and Rick Moranis was a blast from the past and I always enjoy a good spoof, especially if it’s of a cult film like Star Wars. All in all, I think this was 10 bucks well spent and I’ll have to try to remember to screen it the next time a bunch of my friends and I are sitting around with nothing to do.

The Voyage has come to and end

…but The Silver Chair has only just begun. I’m beginning the 6th book in the Chronicles of Narnia series and I expect I’ll be done with the series in about two weeks. I’ve said too many times how much I’m enjoying the stories, but this one was particularly well written. The last few chapters were unique in many ways and C.S. Lewis’ creativity and storytelling ability really stood out to me down the stretch.

Laptop on hold

I finally sat down and worked out a dollar-by-dollar budget for myself and, long story short, “laptop” ain’t anywhere to be found. I might re-evaluate here in a month or so, but the laptop is on hold indefinitely. I’m really bummed because it’s something I could really use and I was looking forward to having the freedom to write almost anywhere (on a computer), but facts are facts and the fact is there ain’t room for a laptop right now. Patience is a virtue.

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Might be buyin’ a laptop

Well, I’ve begun the process of talking myself into buying a laptop, so that means it’s really only a matter of time before I’ll break down and get one. Of course, my thrifty, bargain-hunting side will help to keep me in check, but I’ve been wanting one for a couple years now and I’m afraid I won’t be able to resist much longer. I think it’ll be a practical purchase and, if I play my cards right, I should be able to get a well-priced laptop with a good financing option, so I won’t have to pay interest and I’ll have plenty of time to pay for it.

I’m heading out tomorrow to shop around and see what there is to see (and also to compare in-store prices with online ones). I have a hunch that Best Buy and Circuit City will be competing for my business.

Basketball in the morning

I’ve been working pretty hard to get in shape over the past couple weeks. I feel my game is improving, but it’s hard to say without running some full-court games, and that’s what Saturdays are for. I’m hoping for a good performance tomorrow, but it’s really hard to expect myself to go all out at 9 in the morning on a Saturday. I wish those jokers would play at 10 or so.

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Screenwriting?

Well, it’s been a while since I seriously considered writing a screenplay, but I’m afraid it might be time to give it another shot. For the past week or so, I’ve been writing notes on several ideas I have, many of which may be incorporated into one movie idea. I bounced the general idea off a friend of mine and he seems to think it has a lot of merit and, if treated properly, could make a good screenplay. So, I’m going to dust off the old books, carve out some time and start trying to flesh out the idea. I don’t know if anything will come of it, but it would feel nice if I could actually succeed at something as significant as finishing an original screenplay.

I’ll post as I either make progress or fizzle out.

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Long day, nothin’ doin’

That about sums up the day. I guess, if there was anything significant today, it was that my hopes for going to Austin for a week of training were essentially dashed. I guess there’s a tiny chance it’ll happen, but it’s pretty unlikely. Normally, I’d be pretty bummed, but this time I’m exceptionally bummed because not only will I not get to go to Austin, but I’ll have to drive almost an hour and a half each way to the airport for five days straight. What’s more, it’ll be on my own time as the company apparently doesn’t play for transit time to training sessions.

So, that kinda’ stinks, but I figure I’ve got a pretty good situation here and I will occasionally have to roll with the punches. I’m the Rope-a-dope.

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It’s official

I’m going to Florida from April 16th until April 24th. That’ll give me a few days each in J-ville and G-ville. The ticket was only $268, so that was definitely an added bonus.

Plowing through Treader

I’m almost half done with Voyage of the Dawn Treader and I hope to finish it up by this weekend. That’ll put me pretty much on pace to finish the series by the time I head to Florida. More importantly, I’m still really enjoying the stories.

More training tomorrow and Thursday

I’ll be spending the next two days in a very similar environment to the one I spent a couple days last week. I expect to be thoroughly bored, very tired and mostly counting the minutes to food-times and bathroom breaks. But, it may all be worth it as this training will allow me to shine in my group and in my company, and that could mean a nice raise this time next year. Only time will tell.

On the subject of training: I may be working my way into an opportunity to go to Austin for a week of training in late April (in fact, it could be the week after my trip to Florida, making for a very busy April). Initially, I was supposed to be getting this training in Dallas, but it turns out the training center is basically at the airport. After crunching some numbers, my co-worker and I have discovered that it may actually be cheaper to fly us to Austin–rent us a car, get us a couple hotel rooms (in a Hilton or something) and pay for our food–than it would be to pay us for the commute to and from the airport for five days. Now, if we can only convince our managers of that, we’ll be home free.

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Break time is comin’

I’m starting to feel a sense of urgency about getting some time off and seeing my friends and family back home. I’ve been here about 9 weeks and, while I’m pretty comfortable and feel very settled in, I’m ready to see my people back east. I’ve been spending some very quality time with my buddies here, but I’ve also got a lot of free time and I have to work hard to fend of laziness. With laziness comes a lot of down-time and a lot of time to think about “home”. Most times, I’m ok with that, but sometimes, I begin to long for the relationships I left there.

That’s why I’m so looking forward to spending a week in Florida in April. It’ll give me some time to chill and see the people that I’ve only been able to talk to on the phone (and not very frequently). Vacation seems to have a wholly different purpose now that I’m working full-time and living 1000 miles from Florida.

Sailing through Narnia

I’ve read a few chapters of Voyage of the Dawn Treader and it’s another good book. It seems strange to me that I’m reading children’s books and enjoying them so much, but I figure if I am enjoying them, then why not keep reading them? Also, reading shorter, easier books is a good way to boost my “books read to date” numbers: there are seven books in The Chronicles of Narnia.

I’m hoping to finish the series before I go for my vacation in April, but that may not be realistic. It can definitely be done, but I’d have to go on some reading binges between now and then. Normally, a reading binge wouldn’t be totally out of the question, but since I’ll probably spend the next two weekends doing nothing aside from watching basketball, I doubt I’ll have time for any binging.

I’m off to watch Letterman and then it’s time for my beauty sleep.

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Bracket busted badly

Well, thanks to a 2nd round upset of UK by UAB, my bracket is toast. I guess, in a way, that’s what the tournament is all about. Ultimately, it comes down to matchups and it’s not necessarily true that the “best” team wins the Tournament. Rather, it’s the team that does the best in its particular string of matchups.

But, that’s why they play they games, as they say.

Relaxing weekend

I had a great weekend of watching basketball and relaxing, but now it’s time to start winding things down, so I can be ready for work tomorrow. After last week and a few marathon meetings, this week should seem like cake. I’m not looking forward to it, but I’m not dreading it nearly as much as I did last week.

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Slippin’

Well, of eight games today, I essentially lost six. I still have all my Final Four teams and most of my Elite (or “Great”) Eight teams, but it ain’t lookin’ good. Unfortunately, others who’ve picked Kentucky to go all the way have very similar brackets to mine and haven’t gotten burned like I did in the second round today. There’s still an outside chance I could win it, but it’s a slim one.

Watchin’ the game with the guys

I spent several hours today watchin’ the Tourney games with my buddies and I have to say it was a blast. For one, it’s just fun sittin’ around with a couple guys, screamin’ at the TV and crackin’ jokes at the commentators. For another thing, Tourney time reminds of being at school every March, when things get kinda’ crazy in Gainesville. Usually, around this time, we’ve all just gotten back from Spring Break and, although most people think they can avoid it, we refuse to do work and our performance in our courses begins to slip. Then, just as we’re getting determined to pick it back up in school, March Madness rolls around and we’re sunk. A full month of Conference Tournaments and then the National Tournament distracts us from from school and forces us to spend hours and hours of our time in front of the television, rooting for thirty-something teams, many of which we’ve never heard.

Ah, the Madness. Just thinking about the fun my friends are having in Gainesville right now makes me miss it… and it makes me glad I’m going home for a week at the end of April.

What a poorly written, but emotionally motivated post. I really gotta’ work on that.

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Middle of the road

Well, after the first round of the Tourney, I’m right at the middle of the pack in two of three pools in which I’m participating. I’ll know about the third tomorrow. Middle of the pack is ok with me. Two years ago, when I won it, I was in about the same situation after the first round, so I feel it’s possible I can repeat this year. I’ve only lost one Sweet 16 team–Florida–so that puts me in good position for the rest of the tourney if the second round goes well. From here on out, I’ve pretty much picked favorites, so I guess I’m just hoping for as few upsets as possible. One exception is that I’m hoping to see Manhattan make it to the Elite Eight. If they pull that off, then I’m no worse for picking Florida to go so far.

Playin’ ball in the morning

I haven’t played basketball in a couple weeks, so I’m pretty anxious to get back out there. Last time I played, I had a miserable day, so I can only hope to improve tomorrow. By “improve”, I mean “score at least one point”, although I’m sure I won’t be satisfied with just a point. We’ll see.

Time to play catch up

And now it’s time for me to try to make up for some of the sleep I missed this week.